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Regional Drought Update Date
March 14, 2025
Site Section
Drought Status Update

Drought Status Update for the Northeast

DEWS Regions:
Northeast
States:
Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont
Update Status:

NIDIS and its partners will issue future Northeast Drought Status Updates as conditions evolve.

Dryness and Drought Improve Slightly with Recent Rain and Snowmelt, but Wildfire Risk Is a Concern

Key Points

  • According to the latest U.S. Drought Monitor (valid on Tuesday, March 11, 2025), the Northeast Drought Early Warning System (DEWS) saw a reduction of dryness and drought. Severe Drought (D2) was eliminated in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and southeastern New York.
  • Moderate Drought (D1) remains in place for portions of New York and New England. Extensive areas of Abnormal Dryness (D0) remain in all states.  
  • Warmer and windier weather increased fire activity in several states.
  • Streamflows are normal to much above normal in most of the region, except for several sites in southern New England. Groundwater status is mixed across the region.
  • Snowpack conditions are mixed across the region—with less than 2 inches of snow water equivalent (SWE) across southern New England and western New York, while other sites had more than 8 inches.
  • Rain is expected for this weekend. Quick-responding streams will see a short-term increase in streamflow with this precipitation (and any additional snow melt).
  • The National Weather Service Climate Prediction Center’s (CPC’s) 8–14 day outlooks indicate good chances for a warmer and wetter weather pattern later in March. This should continue to decrease dryness and improve drought conditions, but it may not completely eliminate the fire risk or water resource challenges for all locations.
  • States just to the south continued to struggle with Moderate to Extreme Drought (D1-D3). Delaware, New Jersey, and southeastern Pennsylvania have been negatively impacted for much of the winter, raising concerns about reservoir levels, fire activity, and agricultural impacts.

Learn more about precipitation deficits from the Northeast Regional Climate Center. 

Current Conditions
U.S. Drought Monitor Conditions: Northeast | March 12, 2025
Northeast

U.S. Drought Monitor Categories
54.32
21.52
0.0
0.0
0.0
21.52

Last Updated: 03/12/25
U.S. Drought Monitor details and information: Learn More
Main Stats
2.7 million
estimated Connecticut residents are in drought
554,300
estimated Maine residents are in drought
3.5 million
estimated Massachusetts residents are in drought
10.8 million
estimated New York residents are in drought

This update is based on data available as of Thursday, March 13, 2025 at 10 a.m. ET. We acknowledge that conditions are evolving.

Current Conditions in the Northeast

  • Dryness and drought in the region is keeping fire risk top of mind, especially under windy spring conditions. Outdoor burn restrictions are in place within some counties, municipalities, and regional planning areas in New York, Connecticut, and Massachusetts.
  • Realtime streamflow is normal to much above normal in most of the region. However, in southern New England, several streamgages in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island registered below-normal and much-below-normal conditions.
  • Groundwater recharge remains mixed, but as soils warm, recharge should improve. Since late October 2024, groundwater levels at the U.S. Geological Survey observation well RI-BUW 395 in Burrillville, Rhode Island were in the lowest 25% of recorded values until a recent rainfall event on March 5–6, 2025.
  • A range of low and much-below-normal groundwater reporting sites adjacent to normal or above-normal reporting sites may mean that soils around some gauges are still frozen and blocking recharge.
  • There was less than 2 inches of water in the snowpack across southern New England and western New York, according to the Northeast Regional Climate Center Snow Survey for early March. However, many sites in northern New York had snow water equivalent (SWE) values closer to 8 or 9 inches.

Streamflow Remains Normal to Above Normal in Most of New England 

Most streams show normal to above normal (25th to greater than 90th percentile class) conditions. A concentration of sites in southern New England depict below to much below normal (less than 25th percentile class) flows.
This map shows current streamflow conditions at U.S. Geological Survey streamgages, compared to historical conditions for the same day of the year. Most streams show green and blue dots, which indicate normal to above-normal streamflow conditions. In southern New England, there is a concentration of orange and red dots, which depict below- to much-below-normal flows. Source: U.S. Geological Survey WaterWatch. Map from Drought.gov.

Groundwater Conditions Are Mixed Throughout the Region 

Groundwater status across the region ranges from much below normal (less than 10th percentile) to much above normal.
Groundwater conditions for the Northeast U.S., compared to historical conditions for this period. Orange to red hues indicate below-normal groundwater levels, green indicates normal groundwater levels, and blue to black hues indicate above-normal groundwater levels. Mixed groundwater reports may indicate some observation wells may still have frozen soils near the sites and have not responded to recharge from recent rainfall and snowmelt. Valid March 13, 2025. Source: Northeast DEWS Dashboard. Data from the U.S. Geological Survey.

Snow Conditions Are Mixed in the Northeast 

Snowpack liquid water equivalents vary across the region. Southern New England and southeast New York had the greatest density of reports below 2 inches of liquid water.
Snow water equivalent (SWE) conditions for the Northeast U.S., valid February 23 - March 5, 2025. Orange, red, and light brown hues indicate less than 4 inches of liquid water in the snow ack, green hues range between 4 and 7 inches, and blue to purple hues indicate 7 or more inches of liquid water in the snowpack. A variety of snowpack conditions exist across the region. Southern New England and southeastern New York had SWE values of less than 2 inches, while the southern Adirondack Mountains of New York had  with 7 or more inches of SWE. Source: Northeast Regional Climate Center Snow Survey Maps. Data from the U.S. Geological Survey.

Drought Impacts in the News

Report your local drought impacts by submitting a Condition Monitoring Observer Report:

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Outlooks and Potential Impacts for the Northeast

  • Rain is expected for this weekend. Quick-responding streams will see a short-term increase in streamflow with this precipitation (and any additional snow melt).
  • Later in March, the National Weather Service Climate Prediction Center’s (CPC’s) 8–14 day outlooks favor wetter- and warmer-than-normal conditions from March 21–27.
  • Drought and dry conditions in some areas will continue to improve, but this will not completely eliminate fire risk and water resource challenges for all locations.

Warmer and Wetter Conditions Predicted for March 21-27

Odds favor above-normal precipitation (33% to 50% probability) in the Northeast from March 21-27.
Odds favor above-normal temperatures (50% to 70% probability) across the Northeast for March 21-27.
The 8-14 day outlooks for March 21–27, 2025 show increased chances (33% to 50%) for above-normal precipitation and high probabilities for above-normal temperatures (50% to 70%) across the region. Some areas will likely see continued drought improvement, but that does not rule out continued fire risk or challenges with water resources. Source: NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center. Maps from Drought.gov.

Additional Resources

Prepared By

Sylvia Reeves
NOAA/National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS), CU Boulder/Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES)

Samantha Borisoff, Jessica Spaccio, Keith Eggleston, Natalie Umphlett, and Art DeGaetano
Northeast Regional Climate Center

Ellen Mecray
Regional Climate Services Director, Eastern Region, NOAA

Gardner Bent
USGS New England Water Science Center

In partnership with National Weather Service Offices of the Northeast and State Climate Offices of the Northeast. 

Special Thanks

This drought status update is issued in partnership between the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Northeast Regional Climate Center, U.S. Geological Survey, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to communicate concern for drought expansion and intensification within the Northeast U.S. based on recent conditions and the forecasts and outlooks. NIDIS and its partners will issue future drought status updates as conditions evolve.

Partner(s)
NOAA emblem

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS).

National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS)

Northeast Regional Climate Center logo

Northeast Regional Climate Center

U.S. Department of Agriculture logo

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)

U.S. Geological Survey logo.

U.S. Geological Survey

American Association of State Climatologists

American Association of State Climatologists

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